1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to cooling apparatus and more particularly to a portable cooler for keeping a beverage bottle cool.
2. Description of Prior Art
On many occasions it is desirable to take a chilled bottled beverage on an outing to be enjoyed over a period of time which may span as much as eight to ten hours. To enable this, a portable refrigerating device is desired which: (a) avoids the messiness of ice; (b) is not bulky or excessively weighty as are cooling boxes and similar appliances; (c) maintains near-refrigerator temperatures over the duration of the outing; (d) is conveniently portable; (e) accommodates the large variety of bottle sizes found in today's market, and which (f) is inexpensive to manufacture.
There is a need for a self-contained, portable device for cooling and maintaining a bottled beverage cool. The device should also be able to hold various sizes and shapes of bottles without substantial loss in cooling efficiency. Furthermore, the device should allow one to open and use the bottle without having to remove the bottle from the cooler.
Prior approaches to solving the problem of keeping bottled beverages cool are illustrated in the following patents.
Shaw, U.S. Pat. No. 3,998,072 discloses a portable wine cooler having removable capsules which are filled with a refrigerant. A retaining ring of a fixed size holds the capsules in a space between the ring and the outer walls of the cooler. A handle is provided on the cooler for portability. In this patent, the cooler does not adjust to various sized bottles and the bottle must be removed from the cooler for pouring the contents.
The Stoner U.S. Pat. No. 3,365,911 discloses capsules which are shaped to the contour of the largest bottle to be chilled and are held in a holder which allows the capsules to adjust to smaller sized bottles. The capsules do not completely surround the bottle as it is desirable in this type of device to leave the label exposed for viewing. Furthermore, the device is not designed for portability.
The Kane U.S. Pat. No. 3,282,068 discloses a refrigerant filled pouch held onto a bottle to be chilled by means of two rubber straps. The device will fit various sized bottles because the straps are elastic. The pouch is not designed to enclose the bottle and it is possible that on smaller bottles the straps might slip off, especially when the bottle is wet from condensation. Furthermore, the straps do not provide a means by which the cooler can be carried.
The Stoner U.S. Pat. No. 3,434,302 shows a bottle chiller in which capsules are placed in a container which has a spring to hold a bottle against the capsules which are free to move to accommodate various sized bottles. The spring takes up approximately one third of the circumference of the bottle so that with this design the capsules cannot completely surround the bottle.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a portable cooling device for bottled beverages which fits a wide range of sizes of bottles in a manner which maximizes cooling efficiency across this size range to achieve low temperature maintenance over extended time periods and incorporates a design in which the cooling mechanism, the container and the carrying device are cooperative and function as a single unit, thus offering significant economy in manufacture.
A further object of the invention is to provide a portable cooling device for beverage bottles which allows the beverage to be poured without removing the bottle from the device.
A further object of the invention is to provide a cooling device for bottles which is small, light weight and has means by which the device may be carried.